American Capital Management Inc. Sells 211,343 Shares of AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

American Capital Management Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 32.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 436,367 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 211,343 shares during the period. AeroVironment comprises about 4.3% of American Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. American Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in AeroVironment were worth $79,877,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 131.8% in the 1st quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 255 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 46.4% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 3,040 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $556,000 after buying an additional 964 shares during the period. SummitTX Capital L.P. lifted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 77.6% during the 1st quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. now owns 6,512 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,192,000 after buying an additional 2,845 shares during the period. Themes Management Co LLC boosted its stake in AeroVironment by 57.1% in the 1st quarter. Themes Management Co LLC now owns 1,472 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $269,000 after buying an additional 535 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Union Square Park Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in AeroVironment in the 1st quarter valued at $458,000. Institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

AVAV stock opened at $154.24 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 4.30 and a quick ratio of 3.59. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $166.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $211.71. AeroVironment, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $135.20 and a fifty-two week high of $417.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.81 billion, a PE ratio of -41.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.08 and a beta of 1.39.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last released its earnings results on Monday, June 29th. The aerospace company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.37. AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 9.00% and a positive return on equity of 3.71%. The company had revenue of $641.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $555.97 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.61 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 133.3% compared to the same quarter last year. AeroVironment has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.020-3.340 EPS. Analysts forecast that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.26 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at AeroVironment

In other news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.41, for a total value of $43,602.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 49,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,546,264.41. The trade was a 0.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVAV has been the topic of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $248.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Wedbush began coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. Zacks Research upgraded shares of AeroVironment from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Citizens Jmp decreased their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $350.00 to $230.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $305.00 to $229.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $266.68.

About AeroVironment

AeroVironment, Inc (NASDAQ:AVAV) is a technology company specializing in unmanned aerial systems (UAS), tactical missiles and precision loitering munitions, electric vehicle charging and scalable energy systems. Headquartered in Monrovia, California, the company develops solutions for defense, public safety and commercial markets. Their offerings include small UAS for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, as well as advanced weapons systems designed to meet the needs of modern military operations.

The company’s unmanned aerial systems portfolio features platforms such as the Raven, Puma and Switchblade series, which are deployed by the U.S.